


Upgrade You

by Marleycat



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Cell Phones, David Rose Deserves Nice Things, M/M, Married Life, Past Relationship(s), Patrick Brewer is a Button, Pictures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:02:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29560911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marleycat/pseuds/Marleycat
Summary: A busted phone, a day off, and a trip down memory lane.
Relationships: Patrick Brewer/David Rose
Comments: 49
Kudos: 200





	Upgrade You

**Author's Note:**

> I've been piecing this one together for awhile, partially after I upgraded my own phone. I hope you enjoy. Many thanks to my corner of the SC internet for the encouragement and friendship.
> 
> Patrick's box-saving ways inspired by Lisamc21's [Pandora's Box(es)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28473366) ♥
> 
> Can't forget, title borrowed from Beyoncé.

They were both surprised it didn’t occur sooner. With his wild gesticulations and occasional lack of attention to where it was located when he was excited, David’s iPhone was bound to meet its demise in a tragic way. On a rainy Thursday, it finally happened. David and Patrick watched the phone fly in what felt like slow-motion from David’s hand as he was trying to demonstrate the layout of the new product display. After sailing through the air, it clanked on the edge of the middle product table before landing with a thud, face down on the hardwood floor.

Rolling his lips inward, David looked over at Patrick who was behind the counter. They both carefully approached the phone, as if it was going to jump up and bite them. David bent over at the waist, gingerly gripped the sides, and turned it over. His face contorted into a grimace once he saw the home screen picture of them after their first married kiss, faces bright and beaming, now marred by shattered glass and dead pixels before the screen flashed and went black.

“Oh no,” Patrick whispered as he loomed over David’s shoulder.

“Well,” David’s exasperated sigh rang through the store. “I guess that’s that,” David stood and held the smashed phone away from his body, fearful that its brokenness was contagious. Taking it into the back room, he sat it carefully on the desk before he flopped onto the couch, annoyed.

“We’ll just have to get you a new one,” Patrick sat next to David and was already scrolling through the wireless company’s site to see what phones they had.

“I don’t need the latest and greatest, just so I can do work and text and call. How stupid am I not to be more careful? We have so much on the house to-do list.” The last of his words punched out of him in a shuddering breath. David’s elbows rested on his thighs as he leaned his brow bone against his upturned palms.

Patrick was in research mode, so it took him a few beats to notice David’s hunched up body. He put his own phone down to gently rub David’s back.

“Hey, it was an accident. We have money set aside for these sorts of things and you kept saying how slow your phone has been lately,” Patrick felt the muscles in David’s back relax slightly as he was able to take in deeper breaths. Patrick’s fingers lingered up and down David’s spine, stopping to knead the tension from the nape of his neck while he quietly scrolled on his phone with the other hand.

“You do know what this means though, right?” David let out a questioning hum before he sat up and leaned back against the couch, even if there was a slight pout to his face.

“Since you use it so much for work, it can be a partial write-off,” Patrick winked and bumped his shoulder against David’s before laughing as David rolled his eyes.

Patrick hopped up and held his hand out to David to pull him to stand. “Let’s go get some lunch and I will research some more. You can text Stevie and Alexis on my phone to let them know since they’ll be worried if you don’t respond.”

As he straightened out his sweater, David whispered a quiet “Thank you,” as he went to grab their umbrellas. Patrick grabbed his wrist lightly and pulled him back for a sweet kiss and a smile.

\-----

After closing, driving to Elmdale to get Chinese food, and cuddling on the couch, David woke up to his day off before their anticipated busy weekend. Patrick worked some magic online during the previous afternoon and found he could order David a pre-owned, recent model iPhone that would cost them not too much extra a month. He also took care of transferring David’s number to his plan from the Roses’, the last hold over in combining accounts. If Patrick noticed the little smile on David’s face as Patrick spoke to the customer service representative about _“my husband”_ and how they had been married for _“just about a year now”_ , he didn’t mention it. David hoped the kiss behind Patrick’s ear when he got off the phone let him know how much he appreciated everything he did for him. The only issue was that it was going to take until Monday for the new phone to arrive.

Patrick, being the person he was, had saved his previous Android phone (packed in its original box, manuals and all) in case of emergency after he had upgraded to his current iPhone not long after he started dating David. _“I figured with AirDrop and FaceTiming, it would just be easier, for the business, to get an iPhone too,”_ Patrick had tried to explain away back then. David was pretty sure most of the FaceTiming they did in the early days of their relationship included body parts other than their faces, but he wasn’t complaining then or now.

After charging overnight, the temporary phone was waiting on the nightstand for David as a stopgap through the weekend.

While enjoying a cup of coffee as he completed his post-shower skincare, an unfamiliar tone rang out. David sauntered out to the bed to see a text from Alexis. Normally on his day off, they would video chat over a leisurely lunch, but she was asking for a raincheck due to a noontime conference call with a high level West Coast executive at Interflix. He was excited for all that was happening with her career in New York after the Crows movie, so he sent back some enthusiastic emojis and told her they would catch up Sunday night.

After pulling on his coziest loungewear and toasting a bagel, David sat himself on the couch, flicking on an old episode of Cold Case Files in the background. Not wanting to download everything from “the cloud” as Patrick tried to explain, the phone had David’s contacts, email, and basic things, but not all his bookmarks, pictures, and other saved items. He only used social media now for the store pages, and Patrick would give him a heads-up if anything needed checking on those. He scrolled through the latest digital issues of a couple fashion magazines, and when he found a story he thought Alexis would like, he monkeyed around trying to figure out how to send her a link.

He went to the message thread in the unfamiliar app and in his attempt to copy and paste, he apparently had hit a button to add an image to the text. The only thing that surprised him was that a row of pictures popped up in the toolbar. As he scrolled to the side to view the tiny thumbnails, some familiar images popped up. David shook his head in surprise, but was finally able to share the link to Alexis.

As he clicked back to the home screen, a couple of swipes up and down took David to the main apps page where he spotted one labeled “Gallery”. With a little trepidation and a lot of curiosity, he pressed the icon which opened a page of images.

Sorted by date, the most recent picture at the top of the screen started a flood of memories that hit David squarely in the chest. It was from a week after they started dating, a selfie of them sitting on Ray’s couch after Patrick had invited David over for a summery dinner of chicken caesar salad, strawberry shortcake, and TV. Before dessert, Patrick had shyly asked David to take a picture with him as they enjoyed the air conditioning and unlimited cable channels on Ray’s couch. David demurely schooled his glee into a happy grin, and they pressed their faces side by side. Fully prepared to take a few shots to find their best angles, David huffed out a laugh thinking of how happy Patrick was with their first attempt, not wanting to “mess with perfection”. It had stayed Patrick’s contact photo for David, even after he had gotten his new iPhone a day or two later and the many milestones in their relationship since then.

David slowly started to trace his finger down the glass to load more pictures from earlier days. His eyes caught on the header featuring July 2nd, his birthday and their first date. There was a picture of the store receipt both zoomed in as well as a pulled back shot of the matted frame. A few days before that, a snap of David animatedly helping a customer with a selection and the same picture cropped down to just feature David’s upper half, his smiling face brightly lit by the sunshine streaming through the windows of the store. Patrick had mentioned around this time that they might want to take some photos of each other in the store for their social media pages. David had suggested making Alexis take them which Patrick had nervously seemed to agree was a better idea. David’s eyes crinkled at thinking of Patrick coming up with that little scheme, all with the best of intentions.

There were some seemingly-innocent pre-relationship conversations screenshotted, usually longer threads where they were joking around, or David had paid some sort of flirty compliment to Patrick’s boy-next-doorness.

_Jesus, David. Keep it in your pants._

David remembered the ebbing warmth in his belly during similar exchanges when they were getting to know each other, giddily reaching for his phone when another text appeared and carefully considering the most suave way to respond without acting too eager with his probably-straight business partner/friend. 

Interspersed with these were what David could only classify as “dating app mirror selfies” which made his stomach drop slightly, regardless of the five rings, business, and mortgage he shared with the face in those photos. A shy looking Patrick, his hair a little more tousled and his shirt a little tighter than any casual wear David saw back then stood in the mirror of Ray’s bathroom. There were only a couple pictures with little variation. The confident tease who said he was _“gonna get the money”_ and declared David’s mouth as _sloppy_ , seemed a little far away from these photos that showed his now-husband holding tension in his jaw and his warm brown eyes lacking their normal sparkle. 

From the first-month-of-business-partners side, the phone held snaps of some of their initial product labels and the store layout right after Patrick had offered his partnership, which made David think back to the days of starting their working journey together. Long nights labeling bottles, arranging fixtures, and Patrick trying to explain his spreadsheets over dinners from the cafe where David wasn’t brave enough to steal a french fry from Patrick’s meal yet. 

The only other pictures were of a view David recognized immediately, the ledge from where they had gotten engaged. That spot where they had sat a year ago sipping champagne and sharing kisses was where Patrick had gone to suss out his burgeoning feelings and identity. One picture of Patrick’s outstretched legs capped with those mountaineering shoes as puffy clouds rolled in made David’s heart clench. David had been squirrely enough attempting to admit that he had a crush on Patrick back then. Imagining him up on that mountain-like hill, alone in a new town without his family and friends, and reconciling his sexuality on top of all that was so much. David would always be thankful for Patrick’s bravery and those hikes he took. 

As he continued to scroll down, the next few pictures didn’t exactly feature David, but the intent was there. First, there was the completed incorporation form that Patrick had transcribed from David’s (embarrassing, ridiculous) voicemails. Seeing “Rose Apothecary'' written out by Patrick for the first time nearly made David tear up. It took David zooming in on the next image to realize it was the scribbled, whited-out, folded, and nearly illegible paperwork (even more embarrassing, extra ridiculous) that David had attempted to fill out on his own. He almost couldn’t bear to look at it, reminded of the inadequacy bubbling through him that day that was only dulled by a teasing smile in a blue oxford. The last picture of that row was simply a sticky note. 

In the quiet of the house, Cold Case Files assuming he had stopped watching long ago, David was shook out of his reverie by the loud ping of a text coming through, this time from Patrick wishing him a good late morning. David bit his lip anxiously, considering if he should tell Patrick about the pictures right now. Patrick hadn’t answered back after their initial texts, indicating he probably had a customer. David placed the phone screen down on the couch next to him as he sipped, and grimaced, at his now-cold coffee. 

David decided to handle a load of laundry and give the phone a break for a bit, seeing if Patrick would message back. After carrying the sheets and towels to their laundry nook, David pulled the leftover primavera pasta they had made two nights ago from the fridge and leaned against the kitchen counter as it reheated in the microwave. Their phones had been an open book between them since after Rachel came to town, though neither man cared to snoop, usually just needing to share to look something up or change a music playlist. Patrick though probably never intended for David to see these photos, as innocuous as they were. But knowing his zeal for being both sentimental and a nerd who had three back-ups for all their data, he probably had them copied over to his current phone (and laptop, and an exterior hard drive he kept at the store) and it was an oversight that David was seeing them now. 

As David plopped back on the couch with his lunch, he picked up the phone. No texts from Patrick, and on a nice sunny day like this, it wasn’t a surprise the store might be busy. David mindlessly ate his food before placing the bowl on the coffee table and picking up the phone. Reopening the Gallery app, a row of images heralded Patrick’s arrival in Schitt’s Creek. There were photos of all angles of his rented room at Ray’s, something Patrick had done with his apartment too. Mr. Paperwork even had photos of the signed copies of the rental agreement. Just before that, a picture of the ridiculous town sign, and a few random scenic shots from the side of nondescript roads that could have been anywhere around the greater Elms. 

The next date header that appeared was a week earlier and started with a collection of screenshots; an email confirming acceptance of Patrick’s job resignation along with some other payroll and insurance information, a Craigslist map and posting of apartments in Schitt’s Creek, and a separate one, all in caps, of Ray’s combination job and room for rent posting. 

A couple days before that included a picture of some cardboard boxes filled with random items, semi-cleared shelves, and empty walls. It wasn’t until there was a closeup of a mantel with tchotchkes that looked familiar that David realized he was looking at Patrick’s old apartment with Rachel. He had told David about how he had cleared out his belongings, taken photos just in case, and then asked Rachel to meet at a quiet park to make their break-up completely official after they spent the previous week separated, afraid of being talked out of his leaving that he knew needed to happen. 

David’s finger slid down another row to see a picture of a photo from that same mantel. Patrick, stilted and stiff, was standing behind Rachel, fingers barely grazing the dip of her waist while his left hand held her wrist as she proudly presented her engagement ring to the camera. Her coppery hair fluttered in the breeze standing in what David now recognized as the Brewers’ backyard, a mile-wide smile and eyes nearly closed in joy took over her face. Patrick’s expression however was contorted in what David had jokingly called his “Bob story smile”, what he used for pushy and annoying customers (and Bob) to expedite their exit from the store while still maintaining the illusion of gracious customer service. David could tell from the steely eyes and jut of the chin that Patrick was anything but enthused to be photographed with his then-fiancee. 

It was there that the pictures stopped. 

David’s eyes immediately went to the bookcase across from the couch. There sat a framed photo of him and Patrick, their foreheads pressed together, wrapped in each other’s arms during their first dance in the middle of town hall last September. Even from the profile view, Patrick is grinning and the happiness is radiating from every pore of his face. David remembered the feeling of Patrick’s trembling hands digging into his flank as they both tried to not flood the dance floor with their happy tears before everyone else joined in. 

David slid the phone into the pocket of his sweats before he went to switch over the laundry. As he moved to the kitchen to unload the dishwasher, David knew he would tell Patrick about the pictures and maybe ask him about a few. They had been open about sharing so much now. It made him reflect back on not only the time that they had met but also what he was like when he first came to Schitt’s Creek. Even though it was a couple years more, his journey towards who he was now started slowly with finding Stevie as a friend, knowing his family more, and finally falling in love with Patrick. 

His sweet, initiative-taking, responsible husband had been that way even before he had arrived to Schitt’s Creek, but David hoped maybe his love had been what helped Patrick uncover the man he was now too. David daydreamed, feeling a tug of sadness for the last few pictures in the album as he distractedly wiped down the kitchen counters. 

\-----

A few hours later, David could hear the tires of Patrick’s car pulling into the driveway. David left his temporary phone sitting on the island next to the place settings he had arranged for their dinner. He placed the freshly grilled paninis onto the plates, uncapped a bottle of Patrick’s favorite beer, and poured a glass of white for himself, teetering on the edge of the barstool and committed to telling Patrick about the photos. 

The comforting sounds of Patrick coming inside escaped through the side door and with a smile, he traipsed into the kitchen, a package under his arm. “Hi there,” Patrick leaned in for a short kiss. “You’ll never guess what happened,” as he set the small box down before going to wash his hands. 

“What’s that?” David questioned over the rim of his wine glass, deciding the pictures could wait. 

“Your phone came! I put the store as the shipping address, and I guess they ship overnight to businesses. It was a separate delivery truck that came right before closing. After we eat, I can get it all set up for you,” Patrick grinned at their dinner and took a happy swig of his beer. “How was your day?” 

“Um, fine. Seemed like you were busy at the store,” David nibbled on the crusty edge of his sandwich, nerves building. 

As Patrick shared the latest Gwen drama, Twyla’s story about her cousin’s boyfriend’s step-sister, and the van of tourists that came through, David felt himself spiraling, worried about Patrick’s judgement of him seeing those pictures. 

“I never realized lip balms were such a souvenir to take back home!” Patrick’s eyes narrowed as noticed David staring off into space. “David? Are you ok?” 

“Yeah, sorry. I have something to show you, tell you. Errr…show and tell you,” David clumsily grabbed for the phone as he swallowed the last sip of wine in his glass. 

Patrick’s faint eyebrows knitted together as he used the napkin to wipe his hands. “I was texting Alexis, trying to send her a link, and hit a button that tried to let me add photos. And I guess there were some on here? Of yours. From a while ago,” David brought up the gallery and handed the phone to Patrick. “And curiosity got the best of me and I looked through them. There weren’t a lot. Mainly from when we met, and right before you came to Schitt’s Creek.” 

“Okay,” Patrick looked down at the phone then back at David quizzically. 

“I thought you might be upset. Like I snooped. I know our phones are open to each other, but then I thought how you may have not realized these pictures were on here. I was going to stop and then tell you, but you were busy at the store and I was a busybody. So, I’m sorry.” 

As David rambled on, Patrick ran his finger down the screen, quickly skimming the photos. A faint smile pulled at the corners of his mouth at some images while he huffed out a sigh seeing some of the text screenshots he had saved. Once the screen stopped scrolling, highlighting his exit from his previous life, he handed the phone back to David, who stuck it in his hoodie pocket. 

Patrick took David’s hands, which he had been using to nervously spin his engagement rings with. “Babe, it is fine. Everything in the open right? There is nothing there I wouldn’t want you to see. I found that memory card when I was moving out of the apartment with Rachel and just stuck it in. Then I guess it didn’t clear when I factory reset this phone, but I think some of this is on my new phone and backups too. You did nothing wrong,” Patrick leaned over to kiss David, running his thumb soothingly over David’s knuckles. 

“Would you...never mind,” David ducked his head to lean against Patrick’s shoulder. 

“What? You can ask me anything. You do know that I have seen a little bit of the older stuff on your phone in passing from when I do the data backups?” 

David’s head snapped up “Like what exactly?” His eyebrows raised upwards towards his hairline. 

“Nothing major, but from when you and Stevie became friends, and I am guessing some from around the same time as a lot of mine, when the store started. When we started,” Patrick pulled David off the barstool and with a few small steps, had David curled up on his lap on the couch, his broad hand rubbing circles on David’s lower back. “It looked like you deleted most everything from before Schitt’s Creek,” 

“I didn’t really have anyone to share things with, so it seemed pointless to take pictures, especially when I was so miserable to start. I deleted years of old stuff one night getting high with Stevie. I didn’t want to remember. I still don’t,” David leaned his head against Patrick’s. “I don’t care what you saw. Everything in the open.” 

They both sat quietly for a minute before Patrick lifted David’s chin to look at him. “You were going to ask me something. Before I told you about your pictures?” 

“Oh, it’s nothing.” 

“David…” 

“I just wondered if you’d tell me about a couple things on there,” David dug his hand into the hoodie pocket to pull the phone back out. 

“Of course. What do you want to know?” 

As David scrolled back through, they reminisced about everything. 

_From the most recent photo, one week into their relationship_ : “I was so nervous about asking you to take a selfie, but I just had to have that to look at, in the morning, when we weren’t working together, right before I went to bed, and of course every time you call or text me since that day.” 

_The close-ups of David’s birthday present_ : “I had this lingering voice in the back of my head that said nothing would happen after that date. That I’d just be your friend and business partner, and I’d never see the receipt again. I didn’t want to forget our first sale.” 

_The screenshotted texts_ : “When the hottest guy you’ve ever seen seems flustered about what you’re wearing, of course you want to save that.” 

_Dating app pictures_ : “I never used them, but I took them one night when Ray was gone, just if I ever got the nerve to join an app. Though I secretly hoped that if I did, we’d randomly find each other online and it would kick things off. I just didn’t think I had a chance with you, but I definitely knew I was gay after we met and it gave me at least a tiny push to put myself out there.” 

_Day-they-met paperwork_ : “I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I wanted a copy of the paperwork before I sent it to the government and Ray’s scanner was broken. I justified that I kept your first draft in case there were any important notes I’d need for the future, but I mainly took a picture of it so I didn’t get caught by Ray pulling it out from the back of my desk drawer to daydream about your handwriting and imagining you trying to fill it out. 

As the photos regressed towards Patrick’s life before Schitt’s Creek, David cuddled in closer without saying a word. He could feel Patrick’s body tense slightly, anticipating what David might ask. As he kept scrolling, David stayed silent. The photo album reached the very end with the picture of Patrick and Rachel. 

“Why?” David whispered. 

“Why, what?” 

“Why did you take a picture of that photo if you were leaving? 

“I… didn’t want to forget what having that photo taken felt like, when I was 5 hours away alone in Schitt’s Creek and wondering if I had made the biggest mistake of my life. The first time I saw my face in this, I knew it would never work out for Rachel and me. Everyday seeing it on the mantel, it pushed me to do what needed to be done, even if my execution wasn’t exactly flawless. After I left, it kept me from turning around more than once. And in the end, it brought me to you.” 

David took a shuddering breath and kissed Patrick’s temple softly.

“Why don’t you go take a shower and I’ll work on setting up your phone,” Patrick helped David to stand, taking the temporary phone out of his hands with a kiss before he turned David towards the staircase. 

\-----

When David heard Patrick come into the bedroom, his eyes were closed as he lay prone across the bed. The sun had set a while ago and he was drifting on the edge of sleep, cozy and satiated from his shower, skin care routine, and their conversation. Patrick padded quietly to the bathroom, flicking the switch with the door nearly closed to give him some light to move around safely. As David slipped in and out of slumber, he felt Patrick approach the bed, leaning down to return a temple kiss. 

Patrick stood and fumbled around with something on the nightstand, cords and chargers thwacking against the wood. David remained still until he heard Patrick quietly slide open his dresser drawer to take out some pajamas and head to the bathroom. 

David’s eyes fluttered open once he heard the shower turn on, noticing the ceiling illuminated out of the corner of his vision. He looked to the side and saw that the screen of his new phone was lit up, casting shadows from its charging spot. David pulled himself upward to check the time only to be hit in the heart. 

Looking back at him from the home screen was that wedding photo from their bookshelf downstairs. Earlier, he had focused on Patrick’s face which drew him in like a magnet momentarily again. This time, David forced himself to focus on his own, the creased lines surrounding his eyes, the warm flush blending with his complexion, and his long lashes clumped with tears. It was all the reminder he needed of their past, present, and future happiness. Everything in the open, together.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and any kudos/comments in advance! 
> 
> Please say hello on tumblr if you would like [simplymarleycat](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/simplymarleycat)


End file.
